


Why Bother?

by Naaklasolus



Series: Unsung Heroes: Hellions [6]
Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Angst, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Introspection, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-13
Updated: 2018-09-13
Packaged: 2019-07-11 20:12:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15979634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Naaklasolus/pseuds/Naaklasolus
Summary: A moment between two medics.





	Why Bother?

**Zakuul. Early 21 BBY.**

 

Knockout watched quietly as the smoke rised into the night sky and let out a soft sigh, silently running down the list of chemicals that a single cig contained and the amount it would take to kill him.

Gilamar would have a nerf if he knew what the old medic was up to, but Gilamar wasn’t a Hellion, he was some old kleptomanic fool that filled the medic’s head with foolish ideals. Everybody coped in some way, in some version. Some harmed themselves, to see if they were even still alive or just clankers; others threw themselves recklessly into battle; others withdrew and had meltdowns and so on.

“War is hell, that is why Hellions thrive.” Knockout muttered to no one in particular as he took another drag and blew the smoke out through his nose.

Voss was perched on a nearby rock, cleaning his favorite knife. The rag itself had red on it which caused the older clone to avert his eyes. Voss wasn’t a bad kid, Knockout had prevented that from happening and earned a baby brother as a result, little mouthy Chav had grown into the wise smartass known as Voss and Knockout couldn’t be prouder.

“I hate swamps.” Voss stated.

“I hate sand.”.

“No, you hate heat. You just say you hate sand because Grimm will let you stay behind if we get a mission on a desert world.” Voss countered as he pointed the knife at him with a teasing grin.

“Lies.” Knockout counters as he took another drag.

“Truth. And those are going to kill you.” Voss returned to cleaning the blade. “And Knockback’s too scared to tell me what to do.”.

Knockout blew the smoke out again and tapped the bud a bit, holding it out to the kid. “Ain’t it great, Chav? It’ll do it slowly but if I’m lucky, Krell will get to us both before then.” Knockout smiled slightly. “Do you want one?”.

Voss scowled at him. “Not even if I was being executed.” The kid snipped as he eyed the cig. “Unless you wish to try some aiwha jerky in exchange?”.

“Gods no. That stuff is awful.” Knockout responds as he returned to smoking the cig. “And knowing you, it might not even be aiwha.”.

“Oh?”.

“It might be a rancor.”.

The kid stared at him for a second before he let out a laugh. “Don’t be an idiot, you can’t make jerky from rancors. Their meat is too tough for baseline Humans, now if we Dathomirian Humans.....”.

“Ah, ah, ah, I’m going to stop you there. Don’t.”.

Voss sighed. “I care about you, and you’re....you.”.

Knockout gave a soft nod as he dropped the bud and snuffed it out with his boot before walking over to the kid, gently nudging his shoulder. “War is hell.”.

“That’s why Hellions thrive?” Voss finished skeptically which caused Knockout to squeeze his shoulder.

“Exactly, when Krell finally gets me, I want you to remember that. Jumpstart’s just a baby, he needs somebody to watch out for him, okay? Let me worry about myself.”.

“Does that mean you’re stop smoking?” Voss smiled hopefully.

Knockout chuckled as he ruffled the kid’s dark hair. “Nice try but no.”.

“Asshole.”.

“Psycho.”.

It was either this or Krell. At least with the cigs, he had a choice. He already knew he wasn’t going to survive the war, so why should he bother to even try?

**Author's Note:**

> To all readers, I hope you enjoy this!


End file.
